KIEV, Ukraine
At least 14 civilians were killed amid intense clashes between Ukrainian troops and pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine on Friday.
Artillery fire killed five people in Donetsk as they were lined up outside a community center, waiting for humanitarian aid, and two others were killed nearby, officials said.
"This attack on civilians was presumably a provocation aimed to ruin efforts for a peaceful resolution of the conflict and prevent the forthcoming trilateral Contact Group meeting," according to a press release issued by the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine.
The meeting was scheduled to take place in Minsk, the capital of Belarus, on Friday.
Seven people were killed in a separate attack in Debaltseve, east of Donetsk, officials added.
Five Ukrainian soldiers were killed and 23 wounded in the last 24 hours, according to an earlier statement.
Over 150 people were evacuated from Debaltseve on Thursday, with another 260 evacuated Friday, the statement said, adding that the region was under the control of government forces.
At least 30 civilians were killed last week during the shelling of a residential area in the eastern Ukrainian city of Mariupol.
Eastern Ukraine has seen intense clashes between the Ukrainian military and pro-Russian separatists since the conflict began in April 2014.
More than 5,000 people have lost their lives in the conflict, according to the UN.
